PARALLEL EVOLUTION IN RADIATION OF OHOMOPTERUS GROUND BEETLES INFERRED FROM MITOCHONDRIAL ND5 GENE-SEQUENCES

Molecular phylogenetic analyses using mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 (ND5) gene sequences representing all 15 species and the ma jority of subspecies or races of the Ohomopterus ground beetles from a ll over the Japanese archipelago have uncovered a remarkable evolution ary history. Clustering of the species in the molecular phylogenetic t ree is linked to their geographic distribution and does not correlate with morphological characters. Taxonomically the ''same'' species or t he members belonging to the same species-group fall out in more than t wo different plates on the ND5 tree, Evidence has been presented again st a possible participation of ancestral polymorphism and random Linea ge sorting or of hybrid individuals for the observed distribution of m itochondrial DNA haplotypes. The most plausible explanation of our res ults is that parallel evolution took place in different lineages. Most notably, O. dehaanii, O. yaconinus, and O. japonicus in a lineage rev eal almost identical morphology with those of the ''same'' species (or subspecies) but belonging to the phylogenetically remote lineages.